It is known to integrate a sliding door within a main building façade. The sliding door assemblies of the prior art generally comprise a frame member that supports the door, the frame having a width sufficient to enable the door to be opened and closed. The head and sill of the door frame are provided with guide rails connected to the top and bottom of the door. The head and sill of the frame are interconnected with by vertical support members comprising the sides of the frame. The frame enables the door to be moved laterally between a closed position in a first region of the frame and an open position in a second region of the frame. The range of movement is limited by the width of the frame.
The sliding doors assemblies of the prior art have several disadvantages. First, the top and bottom guide rails of the frame restrict the door to a relatively short area of travel. Second the door cannot pass behind the wall to which it is connected because the frame fixed within the plane as the wall. In other words, prior art sliding doors are limited in travel to region extending between the vertical frame members. This is disadvantageous because a capacity to move a sliding door outside of its frame is vital to modern façade systems.
Prior art sliding door assemblies do not provide a flush appearance with respect to wall surrounding it including the vertical mullions adjacent to it. From an aesthetic point of view, the prior art guide tracks have bulky frame members that interfere with the sight lines of the façade wall. In addition, the head rails tend to be complex in construction and difficult to incorporate within a surrounding wall. The bottom rails are not readily recessed within a floor since they are interconnected to the top rails by vertical supports.
In addition, none of the above noted prior art systems permit the use of multiple sliding doors panels operable on the same track so that the doors may be slid open and stacked behind a façade walls or moved away from each other in opposite directions.